ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Stock Price Down 5% – Should You Sell?

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) shares traded down 5% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $650.00 and last traded at $652.99. 761,556 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 53% from the average session volume of 1,607,365 shares. The stock had previously closed at $687.26.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on ASML shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on ASML from $1,148.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of ASML from $790.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of ASML from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ASML presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $937.00.

ASML Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.53. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $709.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $721.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $255.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.67.

ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The semiconductor company reported $7.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.67 by ($0.37). ASML had a net margin of 26.78% and a return on equity of 47.73%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that ASML Holding will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current year.

ASML Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Investors of record on Monday, April 28th will be paid a dividend of $1.5855 per share. This is a boost from ASML’s previous dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 28th. ASML’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.35%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ASML

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kennebec Savings Bank raised its holdings in ASML by 227.3% during the fourth quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 36 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC lifted its stake in shares of ASML by 740.0% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 42 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in ASML in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT lifted its position in ASML by 133.3% during the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 56 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in ASML in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

About ASML

ASML Holding N.V. develops, produces, markets, sells, and services advanced semiconductor equipment systems for chipmakers. It offers advanced semiconductor equipment systems, including lithography, metrology, and inspection systems. The company also provides extreme ultraviolet lithography systems; and deep ultraviolet lithography systems comprising immersion and dry lithography solutions to manufacture various range of semiconductor nodes and technologies.